Toronto transit starts Contact exhibit for May Special

As part of Scotiabank CONTACT, an annual festival of photography in Toronto that take place during May, Pattison, Scotiabank and the TTC are joining together to bring art to TTC riders with four public installations with Make CONTACT on the TTC.

Make CONTACT on the TTC

Shane Mullins/Newz4u.net

The four installations will consist of both above ground and subway level exhibitions.

On screens and posters in over 60 stations across Toronto the exhibit Contacting Toronto: We're in This Together will take place beginning today for the entire month of May. The exhibit features the works of photographers Alyssa Bistonath, Debra Friedman & Robert Poulton. The project was curated by Sharon Switzer of Pattison Onestop.

25 subway stations will feature posters from Public Spaces/Private Thoughts, the work of Derek Besant. Today at Dundas Subway Station Besant's friend Jane E. Nokes, Director - Scotiabank Archives and Fine Art, and Executive Director - Scotiabank Photography Award (SPA), spoke about the work that he has accomplished. Currently working on a project in Mexico Besant was unable to attend the launch today in Toronto.

One of the most prolific exhibits is Sleeping Soldiers by Tim Hetherington on Pattison Outdoor billboards in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Montreal and Dartmouth. Hertherington, a renowned photojournalist was killed last April covering the 2011 Libyan civil war by mortar shells fired by Libyan forces. The chilling photos of soldiers at rest are located on billboards on Lansdowne Ave at Dundas St & College St in Toronto.

Karen Stintz, TTC Chair

Shane Mullins/Newz4u.net

Karen Stintz, TTC Chair and Toronto City Councillor, said that the exhibits are a combined renaissance of both art and the TTC. She hopes that the millions of riders during the month of May will enjoy the artwork that they see during their commutes.

As part of Scotiabank CONTACT, an annual festival of photography in Toronto that take place during May, Pattison, Scotiabank and the TTC are joining together to bring art to TTC riders with four public installations with Make CONTACT on the TTC.